Comrades in Arms
by denise1
Summary: A little zig, a little zag...what if, after Death Knell, the goa'uld came back?


Many thanks to Sio for her fantastic job betaing.

Comrades in Arms

By

Denise

Jack felt Sam lean against him, her body slowly relaxing now that her adrenaline was fading and it began to sink in that she was safe.

He closed his eyes, indulging in a few seconds of relief.

Too close. This had been way too close. Just a few more seconds and he knew all he would have been able to do would have been to make sure her body made it back to Earth so that Jacob could have the closure of a burial.

Jack heard a low whining roar and his eyes flew open, his heart lurching. "O'Neill."

Jack craned his neck. "Crap," he muttered as he caught sight of a half dozen ships entering the atmosphere.

"Colonel O'Neill!"

Jack grabbed for his radio, his motions pushing Sam away. "I see them, Reynolds. Dial the gate, now! Get your people the hell out of here."

"Sir, we can't leave you behind," Reynolds protested.

"You can and you will! Dial the gate and evac your people. That's an order." Jack got to his feet, turning to look at Teal'c. The Jaffa had abandoned his post guarding the Kull Warrior and was now standing beside Jack, his staff weapon held at the ready.

"Sir, we can hold the gate," Reynolds said. In the background of the transmission Jack could hear scattered shouts and yelling suggesting that the evacuation was beginning.

Jack looked to Teal'c who shook his head. "Negative. We'll never make it in time. Take care of your people and we'll find our own way home."

"Anubis will retrieve his warrior," Teal'c said as soon as Jack released his radio. "We must seek shelter, away from here."

"Yeah," Jack agreed, looking down at Sam. She was still sitting where he'd left her, her eyes blinking heavily as if she was fighting to remain conscious. Why the hell couldn't Anubis have waited another half hour? Eluding Jaffa was hard enough to do when everyone was at their best. It'd be even harder to do while also dealing with an injured person. Not to mention the fact that she needed medical assistance and the safety of the infirmary not a return to fighting for her life.

"Come on, Carter. We gotta go." He bent over, laying his hand on her shoulder. She slowly shook her head. "Carter."

"I'll catch up with you," she muttered.

"You will get your ass up now or I'll bust you down to airman," he said harshly, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. She swayed a bit and he moved closer, pulling her arm over his shoulder as he wrapped one arm around her waist. He nodded at Teal'c to lead the way, then fell into step behind the Jaffa, hoping that they'd find some sort of shelter soon, or at least before Sam passed out and he had to carry her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What's going on?" Daniel demanded, hurrying into the control room, Jacob at his heels. Both men had been in the commissary getting something to eat when the alarms had sounded. Hoping that it was Jack and Teal'c returning with Sam, or at least word of her, they'd both abandoned their meals, hurrying downstairs.

"The Alpha Site was attacked again," General Hammond said.

Daniel turned to Jacob. "Is that normal?"

"Usually? No. But Anubis wants that prototype." Daniel looked through the window, watching the refugees arrive, his eyes quickly scanning for a pair, or better yet, a trio, of familiar faces. "Jack and Teal'c?"

Hammond shook his head. "They're still coming through," Daniel said. The gate snapped shut and he stared, oppressive silence rushing in to fill the void.

Hammond pushed past them and they followed, making their way into the gate room. "Colonel Reynolds, report," he demanded.

"Sir." The man came to attention. "About a dozen Al'kesh dropped out of orbit. We didn't have an early warning like last time. Colonel O'Neill ordered us to bug out."

"Wait—" Daniel started, cutting himself off when the general glared at him.

"Go ahead."

"We opened the gate, grabbed the dead and retreated," Reynolds reported. "They were flying over the camp when I came through."

"Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c?"

"They were aware of the situation but were too far away to make it in time. He ordered me to retreat and that they'd make their own way home."

"Any word on Sam?" Jacob asked.

"No, sir. They didn't say and we didn't have time to ask."

"Jacob?"

"Anubis obviously wants the device. It's possible that he'll think it's back here on Earth, do a cursory search and leave again."

"Possible?" Daniel asked.

"The fact that he's already sent reinforcements is not good," Jacob admitted.

"We'll discuss this later," Hammond decided. "Reynolds, get yourself to the infirmary."

"Yes, sir." The man saluted and left the room.

"General, we can't just leave them there," Daniel protested.

"You heard what Colonel O'Neill said."

"General—"

"Doctor Jackson. There are at least a dozen Al'kesh on that planet. I can't send anyone through until I know what they're walking into. Colonel O'Neill, Teal'c and Major Carter are on their own for the time being," he declared, walking past Daniel and out of the room.

Daniel looked to Jacob, unable to do more than just shrug helplessly. "They won't stop until they find her," he tried to reassure the man.

"Neither will the Jaffa," Jacob retorted.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Teal'c walked through the trees, his senses alert for any sign of pursuit. He'd heard nothing in the past hour save the whisper of the wind in the trees and the sounds generated by his companions, but he also knew that his senses were not capable of hearing everything.

Even earlier in the day they'd been within a hundred yards of Major Carter and the Kull Warrior and he had not known.

A quick glance over his shoulder confirmed his fears; they needed to find shelter soon. Major Carter appeared to still be conscious but he could tell that she was barely so. O'Neill was supporting a lot of her weight and Teal'c could see that it was tiring the man.

Spying a large conifer tree, he held his hand up, signaling O'Neill to pause while he investigated it. The tree was tall, perhaps forty feet. It had dense downward pointing branches that brushed the ground.

He pulled one of the branches aside, revealing a decently sized haven. Dried needles covered the bare dirt and Teal'c suspected that only the heaviest of rains penetrated the dense branches. It would not be a good long-term shelter, it was far too exposed and the presence of the dried needles precluded any fire, but it would serve their immediate needs. "O'Neill." He waved him forward. "We can shelter here for a short time."

The man nodded, maneuvering Carter towards the refuge. "I shall retrace our path and look for signs of pursuit."

"See if you can find some water," O'Neill advised.

Teal'c nodded, letting the branch fall, concealing his teammates from view. He turned, studying the silent woods around them. His expert eyes picked out their footsteps and signs of their passage. Any decently trained Jaffa could be able to find them.

He picked up a dead branch and carefully brushed it over their tracks. He knew he would also need to lay a false trail to draw any pursuers away from their current location. Even had Major Carter been healthy, they would be hard pressed to defend themselves. He knew their only hope of getting off this planet alive was to elude the Jaffa. Glancing up through the canopy he realized that he faced another difficulty. He needed to accomplish all of this in the last couple of hours of daylight.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack let Sam slide to the ground, keeping his grip on her arm so that it was more of a controlled fall. She moaned softly, curling onto her side. He squatted beside her, reaching for his canteen. "Come on, Carter. Sit up for me." She ignored him and he set down the canteen, reaching out to grab her shoulders.

He pulled her up, propping her back against the tree trunk. He unscrewed the lid of the canteen and held it out. "Here's some water." She made no move and he thought for a minute he'd have to help her drink, then she slowly opened her eyes. Handing her the canteen, he dug in the pocket of his vest, digging out the basic first aid kit he had.

It wasn't much, bandages, antiseptic cream, antibiotic pills and some painkillers, but it was all he had. Both he and Teal'c had counted on there being medical personnel on hand and had sacrificed their packs to gain more speed.

Sam lifted the canteen and took a drink, still having the sense not to gulp although he was sure she had to be thirsty. He looked at her, quickly diagnosing the most serious injury being the one to her leg. He reached for his knife, knowing that he'd have to cut away some of her pant's leg. "How'd you do this?"

"Huh?"

"You did a really good job of goobering up your leg."

She frowned at him. "Goober?"

He shrugged. "It's a technical term."

She rolled her eyes slightly, taking another drink. "I aah, I'm not sure," she said slowly. She closed her eyes. "We were—" Her eyes flew open. "Dad!"

"He's ok," Jack said quickly, putting his hand on her shoulder. "We found him. He's already back at the SGC."

"Really?"

"He's fine. I promise."

She relaxed slightly. "It must have been when the self-destruct blew," she said softly.

"How bad was it?"

"It lived up to its name," he quipped. "The camp's gone," he continued seriously.

"How many?"

"I don't know. We found some survivors. Probably sixty percent." She nodded, leaning her head back against the tree trunk. "Hey. Did Anubis get what he wanted?" She stared at him. "Did he?" She slowly shook her head. "You guys succeeded in your mission here. That's what counts."

She ignored him, taking another drink of the water and he let the subject drop, knowing that nothing he could say would make things better. She needed to come to terms with her survival on her own.

"I'm gonna clean this up a bit," he said, nodding towards her leg. She nodded and closed her eyes. He slid the knife under her crude bandage, cutting it free. She gasped and he saw her hand clench into a fist. He pulled back the edges of her fatigues, carefully prying the stiff material off her skin.

The pressure made the wound bleed a bit more, oddly aiding him in his task. "I need the water," he said, tearing open a package of sterile gauze. She handed him the canteen and he wet the cloth.

He began to clean the wound, trying not to do more damage as he looked for any foreign material trapped in the wound. "This ain't too bad," he said trying to keep his tone light. "You'll need a few stitches, but, you know, it only looks like it went through the fat and not the muscle."

When she ignored his dig, he looked up, noting that she was pale and that a thin sheen sweat covered her face. "If you're gonna pass out, that's fine. Just don't hurl. This is all the water we have until Teal'c gets back."

She ignored him and he continued with his grisly task. Despite his light words, he was worried about her leg. The gash was fairly deep and contaminated with bits of debris. It was a foregone conclusion that it'd get infected. He just hoped that with the antiseptic cream and antibiotics they would be able to keep it under control until they could get home. "It might be better if you took your pants off."

"What?" She opened her eyes.

Jack smothered a grin. Yep, that got her attention. "This will be easier to bandage without your pants in the way. And, given that we could be here for a while, I'm thinking you may not want to go for the cut-off look."

She stared at him, a helpless look on her face. "Can't we just—"

"No."

She closed her eyes, sighing. "If I hear one word—"

"Let's get your jacket off," he said.

"What?"

"I doubt you want to sit down in pine needles," he said, getting to his feet. He helped her to stand up, letting her lean against the tree trunk. Her fingers fumbled for the zipper and she winced as she pulled the jacket down. He saw another laceration on her left upper arm as she slipped off the jacket, and also noticed minor burns on the backs of her hands. They'd be sore but the skin wasn't broken. Which was a good thing. He didn't have enough bandages to wrap her hands as well.

He took the jacket from her and spread it out on the ground as she undid her belt and the fastenings of her pants. Keeping his eyes averted, he waited until she lowered her pants then helped her to sit back down.

He bandaged her leg, noting several bruises on her legs. Which wasn't surprising, given the mess they'd found Jacob in. "Is my dad really ok?" she asked, watching him bandage her leg.

"He was a little banged up when we found him. Selmak should have taken care of it by now."

She nodded. "They came right for us," she said softly. He stayed silent, sensing her need to remember. "Ours was the first building they hit. It was like they knew. It killed Glenn, then dad got it. We tried to go for the gate, but, they kept cutting us off." She looked at him. "It was like they were, herding us or something. They knew that we had it and…how did they know?"

Jack shook his head, securing the bandage. "I don't know." He stood up and helped her so that she could pull her pants back up before he let her sit back down. "I should take care of your arm too." She nodded and he reached for more of the gauze. "What else do you remember?"

"It chased us into the hills, kept cutting us off from the gate. I remember the self-destruct going. I could see him lying there in the rubble but…it was coming right at us. I thought I could hide but it'd seen me and—" Her voice shook and she took a deep breath.

He pressed too hard with the gauze and she gasped, pulling her arm away. "Sorry," he apologized.

"No, you're not," she said. "What's taking Teal'c so long?"

"He was going to clear our trail and find some water," Jack said. "Look, why don't you chill out for a bit." Much to his relief, she didn't argue but simply nodded, lying down and curling up on her side, using her discarded jacket as a pillow.

"You like those dramatic rescues, don't you?" she muttered, deliberately not looking at him.

"How else can I keep my reputation?" he quipped, latching onto the chance to take things lighter.

"Thanks."

"Any time." Her eyes closed and she fell asleep within minutes. Jack leaned against the tree trunk, taking a sip from the now mostly empty canteen. His body rested while his mind worked on trying to figure out how to get his team home.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Teal'c crept through the trees, straining his eyes to see in the gathering twilight. It had taken him longer than expected to cover their trail and find water.

Arriving at the refuge, he paused, raising one hand and clicking his radio. The branches stirred and O'Neill's hand popped out, beckoning him forward. Teal'c ducked under the branches, his eyes adjusting quickly to the increased darkness. They did not dare to use any kind of light source. "Any luck?"

"Indeed." Teal'c held out a full canteen. "There is a spring a half mile away."

O'Neill nodded, then frowned noticing the other items in his hand. "Where'd you get that?"

Teal'c held up an SGC jacket, rifle and armament belt. "I discovered another casualty," he said. "I lacked the time to bury him, but did remove items for which we have use."

O'Neill took the jacket and laid it over Carter's sleeping form. Teal'c could see that she was unconscious, apparently resting peacefully. "Ammunition?"

"Only what is in the weapon."

"It's better than nothing." Teal'c dug in his pocket, pulling out the man's dog tags and other personal effects, aware that they would seek to return the items to his family.

O'Neill accepted them, solemnly placing the items in his pocket. "Did you see any Jaffa?"

"Yes. They are remaining close to the camp. It is possible that they do not know that we are here."

"What about the Al'kesh?"

"Only one remains and it is heavily guarded."

"That doesn't make any sense. If they thought they were alone, why guard the ship? Hell, why not land them all here?"

"They are not Anubis' Jaffa," Teal'c said.

"What?"

"I saw one from Yu's ranks. It is possible that Yu seeks the weapon, just as Anubis did."

"Great," he groaned softly. "Hey, you got along with Yu's First Prime—"

"I did not see Ohsu among the Jaffa."

"Doesn't mean he wasn't there."

"If Yu is searching for this weapon, we cannot seek his assistance."

"No, but he might keep Anubis off our ass. How are we set for food?"

"I have ration bars only, although I did see some foliage that might be edible. I must gather it in the morning." Carter stirred and Teal'c lowered his hand, feeling her neck.

"She's probably got three to four days," O'Neill said softly.

"It may take Yu longer than that to tire of his search," Teal'c warned. "Perhaps General Hammond—"

"No," O'Neill interrupted. "He may send a MALP in a day or so, but the second he sees that Al'kesh, he'll lock it out," he said, shrugging helplessly.

"You should sleep," Teal'c said, blatantly changing the subject. There was little they could do to alter their situation at the moment and he saw little need in wasting energy worrying about it. Their energy should be spent surviving for the time being.

"I dozed. You sleep," he said.

"O'Neill—"

"You're gonna have to go find us something to eat tomorrow. Carter and I will stay here. I'll take first watch. Get some sleep," he ordered.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Daniel stood behind Sergeant Davis as the MALP trundled up the ramp. Jacob joined them and Daniel looked at him, noting the lines of stress and strain on the man's face. The past two days had been tough on him, tough on all of them really.

Daniel hadn't left the SGC, staying in his quarters, his heart lurching every time the gate activated, hoping that it was his friends, but knowing that it wasn't.

"MALP's en route," Davis said needlessly.

"If the gate was clear, they'd have been back by now," Jacob said softly.

"Not if they took to the hills," Daniel said, feeling the need to be positive even though he agreed with the man. "If they were too far away to evacuate last time, they may have decided to stay miles away."

"Receiving MALP transmission."

The monitors flickered and an image formed. The stargate was still surrounded by devastation although the ruins were no longer smoldering. "Damn," Daniel whispered as the camera panned, revealing the bulky shape of an Al'kesh ringed by a dozen Jaffa.

"Those aren't Anubis'" Jacob said. The Jaffa noticed the MALP and moved towards it, raising and firing their staff weapons. The machine suffered several hits, the picture quaking violently then dissolved into static.

"Shut it down," Hammond ordered. "I'm sorry," he said as the gate snapped shut.

"General, there was only a dozen of them," Daniel protested.

"With an Al'kesh. Sending a team through the gate would be suicide." He turned and slowly climbed the stairs to the briefing room.

"What if we did that missile thing?" Daniel suggested following him, his boots pounding on the stairs.

"Doctor Jackson—"

"Sir, please, we can't just leave them." He reached the top of the stairs and Hammond turned, facing him.

"Yes, we can," Jacob said, following Daniel up the stairs.

"Jacob!" Daniel turned.

"Daniel—" Jacob closed his eyes as Selmak came forth. "Although the decision pains Jacob greatly, he agrees with it. None of them would want dozens of lives sacrificed for them. General Hammond, with your permission, we need to leave. There is nothing further we can do here."

Hammond stared at his old friend for a few seconds, then nodded. "Of course. You can leave whenever you wish. Jacob."

Selmak nodded, letting Jacob come to the fore. "Yeah."

"I'm sorry," Hammond said sincerely. "We'll send a UAV in a few days—"

"Don't," Jacob interrupted. "They'll expect one probe, we send something else, they just might figure out that there's something important on that planet."

"If that's how you want it." George clasped the man on the shoulder then turned and retreated to his office.

"Jacob, you can't just leave them!" Daniel protested the second they were alone.

"The SGC can't do anything," Jacob said.

"We can try. Maybe the rebel Jaffa will—"

"The SGC can't do anything," he repeated, accentuating the name.

Daniel stared, realization dawning. "But you can," he said softly. Jacob stared at him, not saying a word. "Take me with you," Daniel demanded.

"Daniel—"

"They're my friends too," he insisted.

"I'm leaving Earth. Do you really think George will just let you go?" Jacob asked.

Daniel turned, running his fingers through his hair. "I'll find a way."

"How?"

"I figure something out," he said.

"You'll figure something out?"

"I said I would find a way and I will. You need my help. I can help find them. I know how Jack thinks, I know where he'll go."

Jacob sighed and Daniel imagined that he and Selmak were arguing with each other, or debating Daniel's own sanity, or maybe both. "It'll take me twenty-four hours to get a ship and get to the planet I'm thinking of," Jacob said, keeping his voice low. "And I can't wait for you."

"You won't have to," Daniel promised. "Just give me the address and I'll be there."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam sat with her back against the trunk of the tree, her leg propped stiffly out in front of her. She heard the colonel snoring softly and looked over at him. He and Teal'c had been working hard over the past couple of days, doing as much work as they could to allow her to do little else but sleep and eat.

It had helped, a little. Her leg was infected; she could feel the heat under her hand and the first indications of fever in the dryness of her lips and the chill of the night. The antibiotics had helped, she knew if it wasn't for them, she'd probably be a lot sicker, but they were going to run out long before her leg healed.

Teal'c's spring was a good one and their supply of water was only limited by the two canteens they had. The Jaffa had also found food for them in the form of a tree he declared edible. Both he and the colonel had been existing on their foraged food, saving the ration bars for her so that the antibiotics wouldn't upset her stomach.

That was another reason she knew they couldn't stay here. Teal'c's plants were good for the short term, but she knew they wouldn't exist on salads forever. They needed to hunt and needed to cook, neither of which they could do under this tree.

The colonel stirred and she looked over, watching as he woke up. He stretched awkwardly, pushing his ball cap back on his head. "What'd I miss?" he asked, his voice gravelly with sleep.

"Three birds and a squirrel," she said, forcing a small smile on her face. Their waiting had been tough on him, enforced stillness something that the colonel did not do well. And she knew for every hour of sleep she'd had, he'd stayed awake, watching her back.

"Damn. I like the squirrels."

"I thought you called them rats with bushy tails."

"They are. It's their nuts I'm interested in." She shot him a sharp look. "You know what I mean."

She sighed. "I know. There might be better shelter further away from the gate."

"If Hammond sends help, that's where it'll come from," he said, standing up and stretching, moving carefully to keep from banging his head on the branches.

"He's probably already sent a MALP," she said. "As soon as he sees Jaffa, he'll lock it out," she reminded needlessly.

"Maybe, maybe not. And anyway, your dad's out there."

"What if they don't ever leave?"

"They will eventually," he dismissed.

"If Yu even suspects that the prototype is here, he won't give up."

"If Anubis is kicking his ass like we've heard, he can't afford to leave too many troops here."

"We can't stay here forever. This planet probably has a winter, we don't have any supplies for that." He didn't respond and she looked over. "Colo—" He held up his hand and she stopped.

Footsteps crunched in the distance and she felt her heart lurch. She reached for the rifle, noting that he did the same. The steps tromped closer and she knew it wasn't Teal'c. They marched closer and closer, coming within twenty yards before marching away.

Neither of them relaxed for several minutes, both needing the return of the bird song to convince them that it was safe. "Yeah ok," he muttered, setting his P-90 back at his side. "Maybe it is time to look into a new neighborhood."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Doctor Jackson, to what do I owe this dubious honor?" Colonel Dave Dixon asked, stepping forward to greet the newest, temporary, member of his team.

"Colonel Dixon, you didn't have to meet me," he said, looking around rather nervously.

"All part of the service here on P3X381. And you still didn't answer my question," Dave pressed, rather puzzled why Doctor Jackson suddenly changed his mind, deciding that the crumbling ruins Balinsky had found were worthy of further research…research that now meant that they were going to return home two days later than planned.

"Doctor Balinsky's last report was…interesting. I thought I'd come take a look." Jackson seemed to deliberately hang back, literally dragging his feet through the thick grass of the clearing.

"You mean someone actually reads those?"

"Occasionally," Jackson quipped, looking down at his watch. "I gotta go back."

"You just got here," Dave reminded, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

"I forgot something."

"The sun's setting."

"I can see that."

"We gotta get to the camp," Dave insisted.

"It'll just take me five minutes," Jackson bargained.

"You can get it in the morning."

"Colonel—"

"Doctor, you can get it in the morning," he ordered, suddenly regretting ever letting Balinsky say a word about those crumbling rocks.

"No, I can't," Jackson, quickly pulling a zat and shooting it. Caught off guard, Dave's hands never reached his weapon as blue fire enveloped him, setting his nerves on fire. He fell to the ground, his limbs jerking spasmodically. Jackson knelt over him, reaching out to check his pulse. "I'm sorry, colonel," he apologized, unclipping Dave's gun and setting it out of his reach. "Really sorry." He reached for Dave's radio and flipped the distress signal before getting to his feet, dashing to the DHD.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Dave saw the stargate open and heard the slurping sound of Jackson going through it. He was going to kill him. And if Jackson didn't stay dead this time, all the better, he'd just get to kill him again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Teal'c crept through the underbrush, his attention focused on the large hillside in front of him. There may be a cave there, and that was what he was searching for. After foraging the day before, he'd returned to their refuge only to learn of the near miss by a Jaffa patrol. He agreed with Major Carter and O'Neill's assessment that they needed to move.

Actually, he had been looking for new refuges during his foraging trips and had yet to discover something appropriate. However, the fact that the Jaffa were increasing their patrols now meant that he did not have the luxury of being too particular. It was only a matter of time before their refuge was found. Either he had been careless and left some sign of their presence, or Yu was simply being incredibly efficient.

He hoped to find a cave, perhaps one with an internal water source that would allow them to limit their trips outside and perhaps even have the luxury of a fire. This was why he was searching for a cave, perhaps something deep enough to give them some security and privacy.

He knew what they really needed to do to remain unnoticed would be to move further away from the stargate and the remains of the camp, however he knew O'Neill and Carter were not yet ready to give up on the hope that they may yet get home.

He heard a sound and stopped, crouching down. He could sense something, feel the presence of another. His eyes scanned the trees, searching to visually identify his pursuers. He crouched there for several minutes, not hearing any other sounds.

Finally sure that he had just been mistaken, he stood up, glancing up at the hillside again. His ears registered the sound of a zat in the same instant that his muscles clenched and he fell to the ground, his last conscious thought that his error may cost his friends their lives.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

'Where the hell is he?' Jacob demanded, pacing the narrow confines of the Tel'tak.

'He said he would be here,' Selmak reminded. The symbiote's mirth at her host's frustration only served to irritate Jacob more.

'You're presuming that he was able to find a way to get George to let him go through the gate.'

'Doctor Jackson can be most insistent,' Selmak reminded. 'As you well remember. He will find a way.'

'I don't want to leave him marooned here,' Jacob said. 'Jack will kill me.'

The stargate opened and Jacob tensed, moving to stand in front of the controls, his hand hovering over the weapons. 'Told you,' Selmak crowed.

'Bite me,' Jacob groused. He quickly made his way to the door and opened it, stepping outside to guide Doctor Jackson before he inadvertently walked into the cloaked ship. "Nice of you to join us," he quipped.

"I'm here aren't I?" he demanded, striding past Jacob into the ship. "Sorry," he said.

"Did you have any trouble?" Jacob closed the hatch and followed Daniel into the ship.

"Not that…much." Jackson set his pack down and claimed the co-pilot's seat.

'That doesn't sound good,' Selmak said.

"What happened?"

"Can we just go?" Daniel said.

Jacob sat down and fired up the engines quickly leaving the planet and entering hyperspace. "We're about twelve hours from the Alpha Site." Daniel nodded, fidgeting nervously. "Care to tell me about it?" Jacob asked.

"What?"

"Did you have any trouble getting away?"

"Depends on what you call trouble," Daniel avoided. Jacob raised his eyebrows. "Jack will probably be glad to see us, won't he?" he asked after a few seconds.

"I would imagine," Jacob said slowly. "What'd you do?"

He made a face, reaching down and pulling his zat from its holster and holding it up. "Something I've wanted to do to Jack for years."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack approached the tree, whistling softly through his teeth to warn Sam. He heard an answering whistle and relaxed, slipping under the branches. "Any luck?" she asked, awkwardly sitting back down. He hadn't wanted to leave her alone this morning, but had had no other choice after Teal'c had failed to return the previous day.

"Yeah," he said quietly, wishing he had better news.

"Yu's got him," she intuited. He nodded. "What do we do now?"

"Get the hell out of here."

"He would never give us up."

"Willingly," he reminded. "We can't let Yu get his hands on the prototype."

"So, we'll destroy it."

"Carter." Jack held up the modified TER. "This is the only way to stop Anubis' goons."

"And you said my father's safe on Earth. He knows how to make another one."

"It doesn't work that way."

"Sir—"

"You said yourself, when Anubis had Jonas, he just took whatever he wanted from his mind."

"This is Yu, not—"

"Same difference," he interrupted coldly. "Teal'c knows the score." He held the TER up again. "This is the only way to slow Anubis down and our first priority is to get this back to Earth," he ordered.

She glared for a second, then sighed, accepting his proclamation. "Where will we go?"

"T was looking for a cave in the hills to the east. I say we go anywhere but there."

She nodded. "We've got about three hours of daylight left." She dug in her pocket and pulled out a Goa'uld data crystal. "You should know that I have this."

"What is it?"

"The plans. We were able to download them just before we were attacked."

"And the reason for telling me this now?"

"Other than my dad, there's only three ways Anubis can figure out the weapon. The prototype, this crystal…and me," she said softly, her unvoiced message coming across loud and clear. If he wanted to make sure Anubis never found out how the prototype worked, he'd have to destroy everything associated with it…and everyone.

He stared for a few seconds, then bent over, gathering their few belongings. "Daylight's wasting," he said gruffly, pulling aside the branches.

She hefted her scavenged rifle and stepped out of their refuge. Jack followed her, his attention divided, torn between keeping them alive and out of Yu's custody and what would happen if he failed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Teal'c stood stoically, his eyes staring straight ahead. He was bound to a large stake driven into the ground, his hands and feet secured by chains and manacles. He was unguarded, yet guarded, a dozen milling Jaffa insuring that any escape attempt would fail. They were cooking their evening meal and his stomach growled, protesting its fast of recent days.

He had been correct in his assessment, Ohsu was not among the Jaffa, and Yu was not present either, although the Jaffa were loyal to him.

From what he'd managed to overhear, the Jaffa's presence here was mere happenstance. In an effort to gather intelligence, Yu had ordered his Jaffa to investigate every attack they stumbled across.

Teal'c had been interrogated briefly by Cheng, the warrior in command and there had been no mention of the weapon in his questions, although it was not unheard of for a Goa'uld to not disclose such information with his troops.

Cheng had behaved as Teal'c expected, keeping him in custody until he could summon Yu instead of killing him or torturing him for more information. That simple fact boded well for his continued survival; however, Teal'c knew he did not dare to hope too much.

Yu's mental state was becoming increasingly fragile; the system lord was just as likely to order his death as release him.

O'Neill did not know Yu was ignorant of the prototype, so Teal'c knew that there would be no rescue. The human's first priority was to guard the weapon and the knowledge Major Carter possessed. The two of them would retreat further up into the hills, seeking to remain undiscovered, probably not investigating the camp for several days.

Teal'c knew his only hope now was to convince Yu and Ohsu that they had no reason to remain here, possibly allowing O'Neill and Major Carter to gain their freedom, even if it meant Teal'c's own death.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam hunched her shoulders, wrapping her arms around her middle. Just a few feet away rain dripped off the edge of the overhang, missing her boot by inches.

Her legs were cramping and she shifted restlessly, seeking some relief. Her leg had been ok when all she was doing was to making short trips to relieve herself, but it hadn't quite been ready for a lengthy hike over rough terrain. The more her left leg ached, the more weight she'd transferred to her right leg, straining the muscles.

She guessed they were about five miles from their refuge. They should have made better time, but she'd known she'd held him back. More than once, she'd seen the colonel looking back, hanging close, deliberately slowing his stride to accommodate her.

She knew he'd wanted to be further away from the camp and that he'd just used the excuse of the rain to stop early. This overhang wasn't the best shelter, there was a small cave up higher in the rock face, but he'd insisted that it would suffice and she knew why.

He knew she wasn't up to climbing with her leg, and now he was wet and cold. He was wearing the scavenged jacket and had his cap pulled low over his eyes, but she knew he wasn't asleep. His shoulders were far too tense and his hand rested purposefully on his weapon, seemingly relaxed but still able to react in an instant.

She knew he was thinking about Teal'c, just like she was. This whole thing was her fault. If only she'd been faster, figured out the power source faster, gotten it to work as soon as her dad had modified the TER instead of days later.

If only they'd gotten to the gate sooner, or been able to outrun the blast wave. He'd waited for her, she remembered that much. If he hadn't have been waiting for her, her father wouldn't have been hurt. She should have given him the power supply and data crystal and then there would have been no need for them to look for her.

Her friends wouldn't have to be protecting her even now, they could have all gone home and none of them would be in danger.

She felt sick at the thought of what Teal'c could be going through right now. She still remembered that horrible night in the internment camp, the sickening slap of leather against flesh, harsh anguished cries that cut her to the core.

It could be happening again. Yu could be torturing him even as she sat here, cowering like a frightened child.

"Would you stop."

Jack's gravelly voice startled her, making her gasp. "What?"

"I can hear the guilt from here. Stop it," he ordered. She started to say something, then pressed her lips together, turning her head away from him. Suddenly, the overhang they were sheltered under was way too small. "Teal'c's a big boy, he can take care of himself." She kept ignoring him, seriously considering how far she'd get if she decided to go for a walk. "Besides, he's got an in. Chances are that Osha dude is cooking him dinner as we speak."

"Or he could be dead," she said morosely, unable to keep silent any more.

"Yep, go for the negative," he quipped. She turned to face him, her eyes narrowing. "None of this is your fault," he said.

She slowly shook her head. "I should have—"

"Should have what?" he demanded.

"If I'd have just given dad the information then—"

"Then what? You think this damn thing is the only reason we came looking for you?" He held up the TER, shaking it at her.

"Without the prototype—"

"The prototype was a plus. Like you said, Jacob knew how to recreate it. We came looking for you and we were going to keep looking until we found you."

"You shouldn't have."

"Oh, just like you shouldn't have kept at it until you found a way to get Teal'c out of the gate. Or how you kept at it until we figured out how to get Daniel out of limbo and dare I mention harassing the crap out of various people at the SGC until you got my sorry ass back, not once, but twice," he ranted, raising his voice.

"That's different."

"How?"

"It just—" He raised his hand, putting it over her mouth. She angrily pushed it away.

"Now just—" He raised his hand again, this time using enough force to push her head back, the look on his face urgent and warning.

Sensing that something was wrong, she stopped protesting, turning her senses outside of their small haven. His hand tightened on his weapon and she fumbled for hers, drawing it into her lap. She struggled to hear something other than the steady drip of the rain. Her heart pounded in her chest, loud enough that she was sure the colonel could hear it.

A familiar feeling crept up her spine and she grabbed for his arm, trying to get his attention. "Goa'uld," she mouthed. He nodded grimly, raising his weapon.

A twig snapped and she jumped, her eyes peering into the wet darkness around them, trying to see something. Damnit, if only they'd have tried for the cave, they'd have been safer there. They were sitting ducks out here.

She heard something move and she spun, wincing when a bright light shone into her face. She heard Jack mutter a curse, then the clatter as he cocked his weapon. "Whoa! Hey, it's just us." The light moved away from her face and Sam squinted, her eyes growing wide as Daniel and her dad walked towards them.

She lowered her weapon, slumping in relief and heard Jack do the same. "Well, it's about time," he groused, getting to his feet.

"Glad to see you too, Jack," Daniel said, shining his flashlight around. "Where's Teal'c?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

His exalted highness Lord Yu Wang Shang Ti stepped out of the Al'kesh, pausing for a moment to remember why he was here.

This location had been attacked, he deduced, noting the devastation. He did not believe he had a base here. Had he ordered his men to attack? There did not look to be anything of value here.

"This was a Tau'ri base," Ohsu said softly, moving to stand by Yu's side. "It was attacked by Anubis. As per your orders, we have investigated, looking for some clue as to why Anubis attacked it."

Yu glared, ready to chastise the man for being so forward. Ohsu stepped back, lowering his head submissively. A Jaffa hurried forward, kneeling at Yu's feet. "My lord."

"What have you discovered?"

"The shol'vah, my lord. He requested an audience."

"Shol'vah?" Yu growled, feeling his anger rise. How dare he be summoned on behalf of a traitor.

"He has assisted us in the past, my lord," Ohsu said. "He too seeks the downfall of Anubis."

"Bring him to me," Yu ordered.

Cheng hurried off to do his bidding and Yu stepped forward, studying the remains of the camp more closely. "This was a Tau'ri settlement?"

"Yes, my lord."

"The Tau'ri are primitive. What could they have that Anubis would want?"

"We do not know, my lord. They fled as soon as our troops arrived."

Yu grunted, picking his way through the rubble. This was an extreme level of destruction, more than it seemed Anubis would normally mete out. His foot struck something and he looked down, frowning at the sight of a battered chest plate. "Abomination," he muttered, sickened at the sight of the bastardized creation of Anubis'.

Ten thousand years and nothing had changed. If anything, Anubis was even worse than he had been when he'd been banished. He had to be stopped, before he destroyed everything.

Raised voices caught his attention and Yu looked up, watching as the shol'vah was escorted closer. Teal'c wore the clothing of the Tau'ri. Although he was bound, he still walked confidently and proudly.

He should kill him. Death was the punishment for being shol'vah. He should kill him slowly and painfully then display his body for all the system lords to see.

But that was what Anubis wanted. He wanted to destroy anything that could stop his march to domination. And whatever Anubis wanted, Yu did not.

The Tau'ri delivered severe blows upon Anubis. They'd destroyed his planet killing ship and stopped him several times before. They, the lowly Tau'ri had done more than all the system lords combined.

He heard a rushing sound and spun, his eyes narrowing at the sight of roiling clouds. Ohsu grabbed his arm, forcefully knocking him to the ground. Growling, Yu pushed him away, rolling as a Tel'tak shimmered into sight, moving to hover over the shol'vah.

Teal'c sprung into action, punching and kicking his escorts, freeing himself. Transport rings swept down from the bottom of the ship, enveloping the shol'vah in bright light. Within seconds, he was gone and the ship swooped away from the planet, shimmering into invisibility as it climbed, leaving the planet.

His chest heaved with his rage as he fought his way to his feet, struggling to free himself from his enveloping robes. He stared at the empty sky, resisting the urge to call his Ha'tak and set it upon the trail of the Tel'tak.

"My lord." Ohsu knelt prostrate at his feet, his forehead in the dirt. Yu stared. He should kill the man for his incompetence.

Sighing, Yu felt his rage melt away. "There is nothing here. Leave this place," he ordered, turning with a flourish. Trusting Ohsu to carry out his wishes, he returned to the Tel'tak, settling himself in his seat. Within moments, Ohsu entered the craft, quickly taking his seat. "Return me to my ship," Yu ordered, his palms sweating slightly. Yes, he needed to return to his ship. It was there. And he needed it.

That is what he would do. He would sleep and rest. The Tau'ri…he would deal with the Tau'ri once he emerged from his sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Ya want me to watch this for ya?" Jack offered, staring out the window as the starscape of the solar system faded into the shimmering blue of hyperspace. They'd been lucky, managing to evade all of Yu's ships and leaving the planet without further incident.

"What?" Jacob turned to face him, his hands resting lightly on the control yoke.

"This thing's got auto-pilot, right?"

"Of course."

"Then set it and…take a walk," he said, nodding his head towards the cargo area of the ship.

Jacob nodded, getting the man's unspoken command. He set the auto(-)pilot and got to his feet, quickly making his way to the back of the ship. "You sure this is going to work, Sam?" Daniel asked. He and Teal'c were kneeling beside her, the Jaffa's hands extended over her lap.

"Just give me a minute," she said, her brow furrowing furiously. She had something grasped in her fingers and looked to be working on the latch of Teal'c's manacles.

"I'm sure we have something in the tool kit," Daniel said.

"Be patient. I'm improvising here," she said, her tone growing irritated.

Unwilling to add more pressure to her, Jacob made his way over to his belongings, drawing out his healing device. He hung back, watching as she maneuvered the precision screwdriver in the small opening of the manacles. Teal'c knelt there patiently, his hands resting lightly in her lap. Daniel hovered over both of them and Jacob knew that his impatience was grounded in concern.

'Her injuries are not life threatening,' Selmak reassured him.

'You don't know that.'

'I know that it's been four days with minimal medical treatment,' she reminded. 'I believe you term it, cuts and bruises.'

Jacob didn't respond, instead staring at her, watching as she continued to try and pick the lock. Rationally, he knew Selmak was right. If Sam had been seriously injured, she wouldn't be picking locks right now.

"Aahah," Sam crowed, her exclamation punctuated by the clank of the lock giving way. "Told ya."

"I am most grateful, Major Carter," Teal'c said, pulling the manacles off his wrists. He held the chains out to Daniel. "Would you wish a…souvenir?" he asked.

"What the hell am I going to do with these?" Daniel asked, taking them from Teal'c.

"Whatever it is, I do NOT want details," Sam said, rolling her eyes.

Daniel stared at her for a second, shaking his head slightly until he got Teal'c's joke. "Whoa, now wait a minute—" he sputtered.

"Teal'c," Jacob said, stepping forward. "If you're up to it, maybe you'd like to give Jack a hand flying the ship," he suggested.

Teal'c got to his feet. "Daniel Jackson, would you assist me?" he asked.

"What?" Daniel looked from Jacob to Teal'c, then to Sam. "Oh, yeah. Sure." Daniel gave Sam a pat on the shoulder, then followed Teal'c out of the cargo hold, leaving Jacob alone with her.

"Hey, kiddo." He knelt by her side. "Wanna let me see what I can do?" He held up the healing device. She nodded and he moved, kneeling at her left side. Letting Selmak take control, he felt the device activate, warmth flowing from his chest, down his arm and through his hand. He heard her gasp, then heard her breathing ease.

Selmak fixed the damage, her findings easing Jacob's mind. Sam had done a good job on her leg. But there was minimal muscular damage. He healed the subsurface injury, not attempting to mend her skin. That was the hardest part of the healing; returning the skin to its uninjured state was a task few people could accomplish. And one Selmak had never quite mastered doing without pushing the limits of her abilities.

Sam might have a bit of a scar on her leg, but nothing that wouldn't fade in time.

The device deactivated and he sighed, pushing aside the wave of weariness that swept over him. "Dad?"

"I'm ok," he said, pasting a reassuring smile on his face. "Selmak's just been a little…preoccupied lately."

"Selmak?" She raised her eyebrows.

"You know, you shouldn't worry her like that," he chastised. "She's been a nervous wreck all week."

"Selmak was worried?" she asked softly.

"Selmak was very worried," he said, reaching out with his free hand to take hers. She squeezed it tightly enough to bruise and Jacob leaned forward, pulling her into his arms. She clung to him, her free hand digging into his back. He felt her shake and he stroked her back soothingly. "You scared the hell out of me, kiddo," he whispered.

"Sorry," she muttered, burying her face into his shoulder. He closed his eyes, savoring the feeling of her in his arms, taking comfort in the confirmation of her physical presence.

The fear and worry of the last week faded away, gradually replaced by relief. She was alive, that's all that mattered.

He knew that he should tell her, tell them all about the fractured alliance. He should tell her that once he dropped them off on Earth, he'd have to leave. He needed to go back to the Tok'ra, not because he wanted to, but because he needed to.

The way things were going in the universe, Earth needed every ally they could get, even reluctant, secretive and manipulative ones.

But that could wait. There wasn't anything they could do about it anyway and there was no need to ruin their good moods with pointless politics.

Eventually he felt her arms loosen and he did the same, reluctantly letting her go. She leaned her back against the wall, sniffing suspiciously. She raised her arm, wiping her face off with her grimy sleeve, wincing a bit when she brushed against the gash by her eye. 'Jacob?'

'What?'

'Let me heal that,' Selmak said.

'Are you sure?' Jacob asked, sensing how fatigued his symbiote was.

'She does not need a reminder of what happened every time she looks in a mirror,' the Tok'ra said. 'I can most likely not heal it fully, but I believe I can heal it enough so that the scar fades within a short time.'

"I should get cleaned up," Sam said, holding up grubby hands. "I suppose a change of clothes is too much to hope for?"

"Hang on just a second," he said, holding up his right hand. "Selmak's not quite through yet."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack strode down the hall, not surprised to find Daniel and Teal'c loitering in the corridor. Fortunately for him, Hammond hadn't insisted upon a lengthy and detailed briefing, settling for a simple recounting of facts.

"O'Neill," Teal'c acknowledged.

"All done?" Daniel asked.

"For now," Jack said. "What are you two hanging out here for?" He stepped aside to allow one of the nurses to walk past him, leaving the infirmary on some errand.

"Janet said she's keeping Sam for a couple of days," he reported, confirming Jack's suspicions. Even after Jacob had healed the worst of her injuries, Jack knew that the doctor wasn't one to just blindly trust alien technology. She'd want to keep an eye on their friend for a little while, if for no other reason than just to spend some time with her. "But she also said we could bring her in some food," he continued.

"Would you care to join us in procuring some food and returning with it to Major Carter?" Teal'c asked.

"I could go for that," Jack said, his stomach growling in anticipation of some real food. Daniel and Teal'c actually read his mind in a way. Jacob was gone, and probably wouldn't be back to Earth anytime in the foreseeable future. Jack knew that, several years ago, Carter's relationship with her father was tenuous at best. Heck, he hadn't even really known that the man had existed until the medal ceremony in Washington, D.C. But since Jacob's blending with Selmak, the two of them had grown very close.

Close enough that Jack had already been planning to recruit Daniel and Teal'c into a few 'we were in the neighborhood' visits while she recuperated, just to keep an eye on her for a little while. The fact that they'd come up with the same idea on their own was even better. Then he wouldn't quite have to twist their arms later, when she was feeling better and starting to get cranky.

"Great," Daniel said. "Teal'c's hungry for Chinese."

"Whatever," Jack shrugged. "Daniel, do you have a second?" Jack crooked his finger, pulling Daniel off to the side. "Hammond had a couple of words about…things."

"What things?"

"I don't suppose you know anything about Colonel Dixon getting zatted?"

"Ah." Daniel winced. "Yeah, umm…you know, I really, really didn't mean any harm but—"

"Daniel—"

"Jack, Jacob was going to go after you guys, and General Hammond wasn't going to just let me go and…I had to do something!"

"Daniel—"

"Don't you always say that it's easier to ask for forgiveness rather than permission?" he said quickly. "I only shot him once and I made sure he was ok and I even activated his distress beacon so his team would come and—"

"Daniel!" Jack said, raising his voice. "Dixon reported it to Hammond. You had to know that was going to happen. Ah!" He raised his hand, silencing the man's protest. "The colonel is not going to press assault charges, which he is entitled to do, as long as you make your services available Saturday night."

"Saturday?"

"Which happens to be Dave's anniversary. Hope you still remember what to do with a diaper." Jack grinned, clapping Daniel on the shoulder.

"Diaper?" Daniel said weakly as Jack turned, making his way back to Teal'c.

"I do hope that youngest one is done teething," he tossed over his shoulder, motioning for Teal'c to join him. The pair of them started to walk down the hall, leaving Daniel behind.

"Teething? Jack, what's this about teething?" he called, trotting after them. "Jack?"

fin


End file.
